Cloud Migration Readiness Assessment
A self-scoring assessment to determine if your business is ready to move to the cloud — and what to address before you do.
How to use this assessment: For each question, circle or check the option that best describes your current situation. Each answer is worth 0, 1, or 2 points. Add up your score at the end of each section and calculate your total. The scoring guide will tell you where you stand and what to do next. Be honest — overestimating readiness leads to failed migrations.
Section 1: Current Infrastructure (6 questions)
| # | Question |
| 1 | Do you have a complete inventory of all servers, workstations, and network devices? | No inventory exists | Partial list, may be outdated | Full, current inventory documented |
| 2 | What is the age of your primary server(s)? | 7+ years or unknown | 4–6 years | Under 4 years or already cloud |
| 3 | How reliable is your internet connection? | Frequent outages, under 50 Mbps | Mostly stable, 50–200 Mbps | Reliable, 200+ Mbps, redundant ISP |
| 4 | Do you currently use any cloud services (M365, Google Workspace, etc.)? | No cloud services | Email in cloud, files on-prem | Multiple cloud services in use |
| 5 | Is your network properly documented (IP scheme, VLANs, firewall rules)? | No documentation | Some docs, may be outdated | Fully documented and current |
| 6 | Do you have a current, tested backup of all critical data? | No backups or untested | Backups exist, not recently tested | Regular backups, tested quarterly |
Section 1 Score: _____ / 12
Section 2: Applications & Software (6 questions)
| # | Question |
| 7 | Do you have a complete list of all software applications used by your business? | No — we'd have to check each PC | Mostly documented | Full application inventory with licensing |
| 8 | Are your line-of-business applications cloud-compatible or SaaS-available? | Legacy apps that require local server | Some cloud-ready, some legacy | All apps are cloud-native or SaaS |
| 9 | Do any applications require specific hardware or operating system versions? | Yes, multiple apps with strict requirements | One or two apps with constraints | No hard dependencies |
| 10 | How is file storage and sharing currently handled? | Local server shares, no remote access | Mix of local and cloud (OneDrive, etc.) | Cloud-based (SharePoint, Google Drive) |
| 11 | Do you have custom or in-house developed applications? | Yes, critical ones with no documentation | Yes, but documented and maintainable | No custom apps, all commercial/SaaS |
| 12 | Are your software licenses transferable to cloud/virtual environments? | Unknown or per-device licenses | Some are, some need re-purchasing | All subscription-based or portable |
Section 2 Score: _____ / 12
Section 3: Security & Compliance (6 questions)
| # | Question |
| 13 | Is multi-factor authentication (MFA) enabled on all cloud accounts? | No MFA anywhere | Some accounts have MFA | MFA on all accounts |
| 14 | Do you have a Written Information Security Program (WISP)? | No WISP exists | Have one but it's outdated | Current WISP, reviewed annually |
| 15 | Are there industry-specific compliance requirements (HIPAA, PCI, etc.)? | Yes, and we're not sure we're compliant | Yes, mostly addressed | Yes, fully compliant / No specific requirements |
| 16 | Do you have endpoint protection (antivirus/EDR) on all devices? | Basic or no antivirus | Antivirus but no central management | Managed EDR on all endpoints |
| 17 | Is data classified by sensitivity level? | No classification — all data treated the same | Informal understanding of sensitive data | Formal classification with handling rules |
| 18 | Do you have an incident response plan? | No plan exists | Informal process, not documented | Documented plan, team knows roles |
Section 3 Score: _____ / 12
Section 4: Team Readiness (5 questions)
| # | Question |
| 19 | How comfortable is your team with cloud-based tools? | Resistant to change, low tech comfort | Mixed — some comfortable, some not | Team regularly uses cloud tools |
| 20 | Is there executive/ownership buy-in for cloud migration? | No interest or active resistance | Open to it but not committed | Active support and budget allocated |
| 21 | Do you have internal IT staff or an MSP to manage the migration? | No IT support at all | Break/fix IT or part-time support | Dedicated IT staff or managed IT partner |
| 22 | Has your team received security awareness training? | Never — no formal training | Once, over a year ago | Annual training with phishing simulations |
| 23 | Is there a designated person to champion the migration project? | No — everyone is too busy | Sort of — IT person could lead it | Yes — named project lead with time allocated |
Section 4 Score: _____ / 10
Section 5: Budget & Timeline (5 questions)
| # | Question |
| 24 | Do you understand the monthly cost difference between on-prem and cloud? | No idea what cloud would cost | Rough estimate, not detailed | Detailed TCO comparison completed |
| 25 | Is there budget allocated for the migration project? | No budget — hoping it's free | Some budget, may not cover everything | Dedicated migration budget approved |
| 26 | What is your migration timeline expectation? | Wants it done in a weekend | Flexible — within 3 months | Realistic — phased over 3–6 months |
| 27 | Can your business tolerate some disruption during migration? | Zero tolerance — any downtime is critical | Some planned downtime is acceptable | Flexible — can do after-hours/weekends |
| 28 | Have you accounted for ongoing cloud costs (not just migration)? | Only thinking about the move itself | Aware there will be ongoing costs | 3-year cost projection completed |
Section 5 Score: _____ / 10
📊 Your Total Score
Section 1: _____ + Section 2: _____ + Section 3: _____ + Section 4: _____ + Section 5: _____ = Total: _____ / 56
| 0 – 18 | Not Ready. You need foundational work before considering a cloud migration. Focus on: getting an IT inventory, establishing backups, implementing MFA, and finding a reliable IT partner. Migrating now would create more problems than it solves. |
| 19 – 30 | Getting There. You have some pieces in place but significant gaps remain. Address the sections where you scored lowest — especially security and infrastructure. A phased migration (starting with email/files) may work while you shore up the rest. |
| 31 – 42 | Almost Ready. Good foundation. You likely have a few specific blockers (legacy apps, compliance questions, or budget constraints). Targeted planning can resolve these. You're a good candidate for a phased migration. |
| 43 – 56 | Ready to Migrate. You've done the groundwork. Time to build a migration plan with timelines, stakeholders, and a rollback strategy. Let's go. |
📋 Recommendations by Section
Low score in Infrastructure (Section 1)? Start with the basics: document your network, upgrade your internet connection, and implement tested backups. You can't migrate what you don't understand, and you can't rely on cloud services over unreliable internet.
Low score in Applications (Section 2)? This is the most common blocker. Legacy line-of-business apps that only run on a local server need a migration path — either a SaaS replacement, cloud-hosted virtual server, or hybrid approach. Audit your apps first.
Low score in Security (Section 3)? Do NOT migrate to the cloud without addressing security first. Cloud amplifies both benefits and risks. MFA, endpoint protection, and access controls must be in place before you put your data on the internet.
Low score in Team Readiness (Section 4)? Technology is the easy part; people are the hard part. Invest in change management, training, and communication. Identify early adopters who can champion the transition.
Low score in Budget (Section 5)? Cloud migration has upfront costs (migration labor, licensing transitions, training) and ongoing costs (subscriptions, support). Model the 3-year TCO before committing. Cloud is often cheaper long-term, but Year 1 can be expensive.
⚠️ Common Cloud Migration Pitfalls
1. Migrating without a rollback plan. What if the migration fails halfway through? Always maintain your old environment (servers, backups) for at least 30 days after cutover. Never burn bridges.
2. Underestimating bandwidth needs. If 30 people switch from a local file server to SharePoint on a 50 Mbps connection, everything slows to a crawl. Calculate bandwidth requirements before you migrate.
3. Lift-and-shift without optimization. Moving a poorly organized file server to the cloud gives you a poorly organized cloud. Clean up, restructure, and archive old data before migration.
4. Ignoring licensing. On-premise licenses don't always transfer to cloud environments. Some vendors charge differently for cloud-hosted versions. Audit licensing before you get a surprise bill.
5. No training. "Here's your new login" is not a migration plan. Budget at least 2-4 hours of user training for major transitions. Untrained users call the help desk 5x more.
6. Going all-in on Day 1. The best migrations are phased: email first, then file storage, then applications. Each phase gives you a checkpoint to assess and adjust before continuing.
7. Forgetting about printers, scanners, and local devices. These still need to work after migration. "Scan to folder" workflows break when the folder moves to the cloud. Plan for these edge cases.
Book a Free Cloud Readiness Assessment
This self-assessment gives you a starting point. A hands-on assessment by our team gives you a concrete migration plan with timelines, costs, and a step-by-step roadmap.
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